#33 - Hash Browns

By Ryon - Over the course of my life, I have had an interesting and ever-changing relationship with potatoes. When I was a boy, my interest in the vegetable mostly ended at anything beyond the french fry. If it was not cut into strips and fried to a golden crisp, I couldn't much care for it. Slowly, I have come to appreciate potatoes in all of its many culinary forms... most recently ending my 27-year boycott of mashed potatoes.

Hash browns may never have made it onto my "don't eat" list, probably because of their close resemblance to the french fry. The hash browns that come out of this recipe, however, are not your typical hash brown. You don't end up with a shredded pile of browned potato or the cubed version served with onions that you will see at most diners. This is more like a potato pancake or a latke. Whichever name you'd like to give it, what you end up with is potato at its finest. The big thing that separates this recipe from a latke is that the only seasonings you are introducing here are salt and pepper.

These take a little bit of babysitting. I remember, my senior year of college, I tried to make these without first getting the recipe from my dad. The end result was a total disaster because I had no idea that you needed to pay so much attention to the pan heat and cooking time. My thought was, "They're hash browns. How hard can they be?" Not hard. Just a bit finicky. Pay close attention to the times and stove top settings that my dad lays out in this recipe. And it is crucial to have a fry pan with a lid so that these cook properly. If you don't have a lid, use aluminum foil to fashion a makeshift cover. Remember, "What you are aiming for are hash BROWNS... so adjust your heat accordingly."

These are a perfect match for a nice NY strip steak... or eggs, if you're wanting hash browns for breakfast.

NOTE: When grating potatoes, be careful not to grate your fingers along with them. (See below)

Rating: RHC